Juniper the fox became an Internet sensation after she confused a white bed sheet with snow. The happy pet fox won many people’s hearts with her playful antics and sweet smile.
As it turns out, the pretty fox has an equally adorable best friend named Moose. He’s a rescued Australian Shepherd/Malamute mix who became her friend from the moment her mother brought her home.
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Although Juniper is kept as a pet, her human strongly cautions others against keeping foxes as pets, pointing out they smell, are stubborn and require a lot of special care. She also points out the animals have a lot of differences from their canine cousins, despite being from the same species.
“Foxes are not like dogs. While they may display some characteristics similar to dogs these animals have not been bred to want to please people, while dogs on the other hand have.”
However, that doesn’t mean Juniper doesn’t want to please other animals. Her mom says Juniper adores dogs, especially Moose.
Moose has known Juniper since she was a baby.
“Juniper LOVES dogs, but most dogs do not love Juniper. In fact, most dogs become stressed and uncomfortable around foxes,” explains Juniper’s mom.
Why? “Foxes have a different body language than dogs.” Their behaviors and signals confuse dogs, who can’t always understand what Juniper is saying.
Juniper’s known a beagle named Daisy since she was little. “As you can see in the video Daisy is fine with Juniper while she’s crouching and wagging her tail,” says Juniper’s mom. “This is something puppies do to show submission and dogs get that!”
Click on the image below to play the video.
“However, you can also see that Juniper makes a lot of direct eye contact. All dogs find this uncomfortable and you can see that Daisy continually tries to look away. Thirdly, when foxes play they like to jump at each other, mouths open, ears back. Dogs see this as dominance or a threat, which is why Daisy let Juniper know'”hey, I don’t like this’ and walked away. You may also notice that Juni does not take no for an answer and continually insists on playing, which can also be pretty stressful for an unsure dog.”
But Moose is no such dog. He’s very comfortable with his sibling fox.
They play together.
Although he can’t convince her to go swimming in a puddle. (Click on image to play the video)
The two love to cuddle.
Juniper misses him when he’s away and is very happy when he comes home. (Click on image to see video)
They share a lot of laughs. “Hey Moose, I just hid 10 socks in the couch cushions. Mum will never find them there.”
For Juniper, Moose is like her big brother.
Or possibly her boyfriend? She’s very affectionate with him.
Even when Juniper’s getting up to her antics on the bed, Moose is relaxed and takes it in stride. (Click on the image to play video.)
They’re best friends forever!
Share their sweet friendship with your family and friends.
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